Kate Garraway's new relationship with Liam Halligan was revealed last week, but now the Good Morning Britain star has opened up about her beau for the first time.
The TV star was heartbreakingly widowed in January 2024, when her husband, political lobbyist and psychotherapist, Derek Draper, died after a long battle with Covid. The pair married in 2005 and share two children, Darcey, 20, and Billy, 16.
© Getty ImagesAfter coping with the trauma of her husband's passing, Kate appears to have found love again with Liam, who is an Irish-British economist and journalist who presents The Telegraph's weekly Planet Normal podcast
Opening up about her new relationship, Kate told the Mirror at the Chelsea Flower Show: "It is lovely. I suppose it is!"
© Alamy Stock Photo"We basically haven’t really had time for a proper date! I don’t want to jinx it! I don’t want to say anything because I will jinx it! I will jinx it. We all love an Irishman, don't we?"
When asked if she and Liam had plans to set up some "proper dates," she admitted that Liam had been asking her the very same question. "He says to me, 'Now we're in the papers, is there are a chance we can actually have some dates?' But my mum and dad have not been very well so I've been really consumed by that.
"It's been tricky and I've just been doing that this weekend. My dad was supposed to be with me actually [at Chelsea] but he’s not well enough. I’m very lucky to have both of them, and I know it's normal [part of ageing]."
She agreed that her romance was a bit of light relief: "Yes. It's lovely. And it’s lovely to have you all caring!"
A low-key start
Kate's comments on her new flame came after they were seen spending time together in Saffron Walden in Essex last month, dad-of-three Liam's hometown.
According to reports, Kate and Liam enjoyed a date night at The Railway Arms pub, during which Liam performed with his band.
© ITVLiam recently explained the origins of their bond, explaining they became "good friends" after both becoming "single against our wishes" in recent years.
He told Mark Dolan on Talk TV: "It's early days, we'll see what happens. I've known her for a long time. I knew Derek. I was a political commentator. In recent years, for different reasons, we have both become single, against our wishes. So, in recent weeks and months, Kate and I have become good friends."
